FRANKLIN, Mass. – January 27, 2024 – The Dean College men's basketball team fell to Emmanuel, 83-72, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play inside Pieri Gymnasium Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs (6-14, 2-7 GNAC) host the University of Saint Joseph on Tuesday at 5 p.m. Emmanuel (9-10, 5-3 GNAC) will host Albertus Magnus on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Senior AJ Weston (Kansas City, Mo.) led Dean with 25 points. Senior Charles Walker (Princeton, N.C.) was next with 15 points. Senior Jayden Madise (Palmdale, Calif.) notched his fifth double-double of the season finishing with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Junior Paris Smith (Chicago, Ill.) chipped in with eight points and eight rebounds.

Emmanuel received a game best 27 points from senior Donte Pope (Middletown, Conn.). He went 12-of-16 from the floor and grabbed 12 rebounds. Senior Ryan Grijalva (Stratham, N.H.) poured in 26 points to go with seven boards and four assists. First-year Mahari Guerrier (Stoughton, Mass.) also recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The first half was tightly contested through the first 13 minutes of action. Trailing 22-21, the Bulldogs strung together a 14-5 run to close out the half. Each team made 11 baskets in the half, but Dean built the lead thanks to converting 12-of-13 free throws. Weston, Madise and Walker each had eight points for the Bulldogs. Pope registered 11 points to lead the Saints.

In the second half, Emmanuel shot an impressive 72.4% from the floor (21-29) and 66.7% from beyond the arc (6-9). The Saints opened with a 14-4 run and never looked back. The lead ballooned to 18 with 6:29 left to play. Grijalva scored 18 of his 26 points in the half. Weston had 17 in the frame for Dean.